In Brief: Beer, Siestas, and Team Players

Relax, Synapse

The brain continues to hum away as we sleep, consolidating memories, but sleep's greatest benefit to memory may be the way it allows most synaptic connections to weaken by paring down their receptors. As the day goes on, these junctions between neurons become saturated. Sleep helps wipe the slate so you're ready to take in new things.

Why Disclaimers Backfire

Saying "I don't mean to sound arrogant, but... " actually makes your comment sound more high-and-mighty—that is, assuming it actually is pompous. The same goes when you ward off accusations of laziness and selfishness. According to research, rather than immunize you, disclaimers direct listeners' expectations to unappealing traits.

63%

Sixty three percent of Americans aged 18 to 29 without significant others aren't looking for one.

Team Effort

Not all jocks are the same in the dating game. Women are significantly more interested in men who play team sports than in men who play individual sports, but only for long-term relationships. Researchers theorize that playing on a team signals cooperation, likability, and role-acceptance. If it's your turn to warm the bench or iron the laundry, you'll do it.

Cheers to Good Health

If you don't mind the gut, moderate beer consumption can boost your immunity to disease. Drinking one to two cans of brew every day for a month improved several measures of immune-system functioning, including antibody concentrations, in healthy Spanish subjects. The effect was stronger for women, so let's make every night Ladies' Night.

Soul Mates: A Dangerous Idea

Romeo and Juliet died for love, but could they kill? According to a CDC report, a quarter of American women suffer the debilitating physical and emotional effects of domestic violence at some point. About 1,200 women are killed and 2 million injured at the hands of a partner each year.

What does the legal system say? If a defendant's lawyer can prove that his actions were provoked by his wife's infidelity, "heat of passion" is considered a mitigating circumstance in wife-murder; until 1974, it was actually legal in Texas to kill your wife and her lover if you caught them in action.

Aaron Ben-Ze'ev, a philosopher at the University of Haifa and co-author of In the Name of Love, sees a dark link between the law's treatment of crimes of passion and society's views on romance. His research reveals that wife-murderers are particularly strong subscribers to the same romantic ideology we're all encouraged to believe in—one that emphasizes strict monogamy and finding a "soul mate." It's a mind-set that can't withstand the realities of, say, partner infidelity, and often causes deep disappointment and dysfunction, even if it doesn't spur homicide. —Kim Mickenberg

Diagnosis: Bellyachers

Pain intensity usually depends on context: When you pull your hand away from a hot stove, your brain circuits amplify the pain signals to send you a stern warning. But when you receive a vaccination, the pain's predictability, paired with the knowledge that it's for a good cause, lessens your distress.

An fMRI study shows that women with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)—chronic diarrhea, bloating, or constipation—are particularly sensitive to physical discomfort no matter the context. At UCLA, researchers discovered that women with IBS are more vigilant about pain than non-IBS patients, regardless of the intensity of the stimulus given. They lack the ability to mute the discomfort, says UCLA's Steven Berman, but it's not clear whether their pain intolerance is a cause or a result of IBS. —Jett Stone

Soothe Your Stomach

IBS afflicts 10 to 15 percent of the U.S. population and is most prevalent among women. There's no cure for the condition, but it can be treated:

• Avoid the main symptom-triggers such as caffeine, citrus, corn, dairy lactose, and wheat. Take in more fiber by eating pasta, rice, or oatmeal.
• Physicians often prescribe low doses of loperamide or even antidepressants, which can slow intestinal movements and ease the pain.
• Psychotherapy—cognitive behavioral therapy, stress management, relaxation therapy, and hypnosis—are helpful for severe symptoms.